The Bitcoin standard: The decentralized alternative to centralized banking
by Dr. Saifedean Ammous
Dr. Saifedean Ammous' The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking provides an overview of what Bitcoin is, and what it could mean for society as a whole. Bitcoin originated as an obscure but powerful idea. In the book, Dr. Ammous elaborates on how Bitcoin grew into the answer to what many see as a world plagued by centralization.
Unlike many later crypto platforms, Bitcoin focused solely on the problem of money. People need to be able to transfer value and save with a stable currency, and in the modern era, central banks have taken on the role of issuing this vital social good.
Dr. Ammous leads the reader through the history of money and shows the ideas that Bitcoin embodies in the digital age. Instead of using fiat currency, the author shows how powerful the idea of choice can be when conveyed over the Internet. The author argues that it is no coincidence that Bitcoin emerged when central banks became social planners after the 2008 crisis.
From this point on, the book shows readers how Bitcoin works, and why it can be used instead of fiat currency. It discusses the idea of trustless systems, and why this is such a revolutionary idea in the modern history of money. Most people alive today have not lived without money issued by central banks because metals are no longer used as money.
Trustless systems, as Bitcoin is, are a very new technology, and according to the author, these new systems can make many other new social ideas viable. Bitcoin also undermines the idea of central banks planning the economic cycle through interest rates, another part of money that many people consider immutable.
The author continues with the idea of Bitcoin as a new form of the global gold standard, which can be used on a supranational basis to settle payments and also as a country's reserve asset. Although these ideas seemed far-fetched a few years ago, this book seems prophetic due to the rush by major financial institutions to secure assets.
Dr. Ammous earned a Ph.D. in Sustainable Development from Columbia University, and also holds an MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics, as well as a Bachelor of Engineering from the American University of Beirut. In addition to writing, the author also teaches the economics of Bitcoin.
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